Mari Gallagher Research and Consulting Group

Projects

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Food Deserts and Public Health
(Keep scrolling down for other content areas)
- Richmond, Virginia, Children’s Diabetes Risk Assessment Launched – April, 28, 2008
  
  Type 2 diabetes (non-insulin dependent diabetes) affects more than 20 million U.S. residents and is the most common form of the disease. However, because diabetes exhibits few, if any, symptoms until its advanced stages, millions more are unaware that they are in danger of developing the disease. When blood glucose (sugar) levels are higher than normal, but not yet high enough to be classified as diabetes, a condition known as pre-diabetes exists. If discovered early, a person with pre-diabetes can avoid the disease through education, diet, exercise and appropriately prescribed medications. RediClinic LLC, BIOSAFE Laboratories, Inc., and Glycemion have partnered with Mari Gallagher Research & Consulting Group and the National Center for Public Research in the provision of free diabetes screenings to school age children in Richmond, Virginia to help identify diabetic and pre-diabetic children and adolescents. Mari Gallagher Research & Consulting Group has conducted extensive research on the identification of and solution to the Food Desert and its link to diabetes. MG defines Food Deserts as large or isolated geographical area with limited, or no, access to mainstream grocery stores. “This is a wonderful example of direct action being taken by business and science in response to our research. Most importantly, children and the communities they live in will benefit greatly from this effort,” said Mari Gallagher, president of NCPR and Mari Gallagher Research & Consulting Group.
  
  Downloads
  - Download Full Diabetes Risk Assessment Announcement PDF Download (196.8 KB)
- The National Center for Public Research (NCPR) Declares September National Food Desert Awareness Month
  
  September is the month to showcase what you, your community, your school, your church, or your business are doing to promote solutions that improve food access, wellness, and quality of life. Read the full announcement along with other new MG downloads on how consumers tend to rely on the food stores to which they have the most access, even if for health or other reasons, they prefer or require other types of foods. We call this The Convenience Food Factor © – a new, emerging body of MG work which links the influence of geographic access on food purchasing decisions. We find it can impact many different types of households, including higher income households with cars, although it likely has the greatest impact on poorer households without cars.
  
  Downloads
  - National Food Desert Month PDF Download (148.1 KB)
  - MG Food Desert Definitions PDF Download (81.5 KB)
  - Food Desert Field Photos Storyboard PDF Download (2.2 MB)
  - The Convenience Food Factor Storyboard PDF Download (983.8 KB)
- The Potential Impacts of a Wal-Mart Supercenter [At 83rd & Stewart in Chicago, Illinois] on Grocer Agglomeration, Food Deserts, Food Balance, and Public Health – February 24, 2008
  
  This 46-page Professional Opinion quantifies the block-by-block food access impact that the proposed Wal-Mart would have if it opens at that site. It also quantifies the impact of nearby grocers that have recently opened or closed. Retail agglomeration and new neighborhood market frameworks and measures are introduced, such as the Snowball Index and Snowball Effect, which explain why retail attracts retail and like attracts like. The work is a must-read for anyone interested in the complicated and interwoven dynamics of today’s commercial shopping districts.
  
  Downloads
  - Download Professional Opinion of a Wal-Mart Supercenter at 83rd & Stewart in Chicago, Illinois PDF Download (3.2 MB)
- The Courier-Journal Food Access Briefing for Louisville, Kentucky – November 25, 2007
  
  This briefing examines food access for roughly 10,000 blocks in Central Louisville.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (226.9 KB)
- Louisville Storyboard
  
  If you don’t have time to read the full Louisville report, view this one-page storyboard and map.
  
  Downloads
  - Louisville Food Balance Storyboard PDF Download (317.0 KB)
- Chicago Sun Times Briefing on USDA Food Stamp Liquor Stores - Nov. 9, 2007
  
  This briefing examines USDA Food Stamp retailers named as “medium grocer” or another label in the government data that are likely instead to be liquor stores. Full briefing available on November 9, 2007
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (1.1 MB)
- Examining the Impact of Food Deserts on Public Health in DETROIT - June 19, 2007
  
  “This report ought to serve as a wake-up call, and my guess is that it will. It documents a serious problem clearly and forcefully. It is much harder now to avoid the conclusion that action to address it in Detroit warrants a high priority.” These are the opening words of Thomas Kingsley of the Urban Institute who wrote the foreword to Examining the Impact of Food Deserts on Public Health in Detroit, by Mari Gallagher Research & Consulting Group.
  Read More
  
  Downloads
  - Full Report Download (1.9 MB)
  - Full Executive Briefing Download (364.0 KB)
  - Pages 1-4 Only Download (349.3 KB)
  - Pages 5-8 Only Download (396.5 KB)
  - Pages 9-12 Only Download (1.3 MB)
  - Pages 13-16 Only Download (989.3 KB)
- Detroit Project Technical Appendix - June 19, 2007
  
  This document is a companion to Examining the Impact of Food Deserts on Public Health in DETROIT and is a must-read for anyone interested in exciting new methodologies concerning food deserts and public health. Mari Gallagher discusses her group’s new methodology to tract the public health impact of community development and market investment. Additional tables and maps can also be found which are not in the main briefing, as well as more methodological details. Read More
  
  Downloads
  - Full Report Download (1.1 MB)
  - Author’s Comments & Acknowledgements Only Download (272.0 KB)
  - Methodology Only Download (377.7 KB)
  - Additional Tables Only Download (206.8 KB)
  - Additional Maps Only Download (282.6 KB)
  - Next Steps in our Food Desert Work & Additional Reading Only Download (622.9 KB)
- Detroit Stranded in the Food Desert Forum Program - June 19, 2007
  
  The program description details an event sponsored by LaSalle Bank and Detroit LISC to review the findings of Examining the Impact of Food Deserts on Public Health in Detroit by Mari Gallagher Research & Consulting Group.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (359.3 KB)
- The Detroit Community Storyboard © Series on Food Deserts: Why it Matters and What Communities Can Do – March 10, 2008
  
  The reproduction of MG analysis into these 10 Community Storyboards © was made possible by the Kellogg Foundation, the Skillman Foundation, the University of Michigan School of Social Work, and the Good Neighborhoods Initiative. Do you live in a Food Desert? While the focus of these Storyboards is on Detroit, each provides concrete examples of what you and your own good neighbors can do in your own community. Community Storyboards and Storyboards are copyrighted MG products that are “leave behinds” for ongoing community use. They help jump start local planning and action. Call us for more information.
  
  Downloads
  - #1 Definitions Storyboard Download (357.3 KB)
  - #2 Mainstream and fringe food Storyboard Download (447.6 KB)
  - #3 USDA Food Stamp retailers in Detroit Storyboard Download (379.3 KB)
  - #4 Detroit Food Balance Map Storyboard Download (986.7 KB)
  - #5 Women and Children Last in Detroit Storyboard Download (532.8 KB)
  - #6 YPLL and YPLG Storyboard Download (377.1 KB)
  - #7 Snowball Effect Storyboard Download (375.4 KB)
  - #8 Metro Detroit and Detroit Storyboard Download (389.1 KB)
  - #9 Opportunities to Improve Corner Stores Storyboard Download (389.2 KB)
  - #10 Every Project Matters Storyboard Download (523.0 KB)
- Examining the Impact of Food Deserts on Public Health in CHICAGO - July 18, 2006
  
  In 1923, long before the rise of McDonald’s golden arches, an advertisement for beef made this proclamation in the Bridgeport Telegraph: “Ninety percent of the diseases known to man are caused by cheap foodstuffs. You are what you eat.” The phrase you are what you eat actually dates back to the 17th century. Over time, science has repeatedly demonstrated that nutritional intake directly affects health outcomes. That we are what we eat is a medical fact. But to what degree does what we eat and, thus, our health, depend on where we live and the types of food we have access to? Read More
  
  Downloads
  - Full Report Download (1.3 MB)
  - Foreword & Executive Summary Only Download (432.3 KB)
  - Methodology & Data Development Only Download (206.2 KB)
  - Findings Only Download (904.8 KB)
  - Conclusions, Acknowledgements & Bibliography Only Download (231.0 KB)
- LaSalle Bank Chicago Food Desert 4-Page Brochure - July 18, 2006
  
  This is a helpful summary of our Chicago Food Desert study prepared by our sponsor, LaSalle Bank.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (267.5 KB)
- Chicago Women and Children Last in the Food Desert - July 18, 2006
  
  Chicago has roughly 500,000 people who live in the food desert, a place with no or distant grocery stores, but nearby fast food options. Read More
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (113.9 KB)
- Chicago’s Most Out-of-Balance Tracts
  
  This very short briefing begins with our foundational premise that the health and vitality of urban communities is a block-by-block phenomenon. Our first task is to measure the distance from every City of Chicago block to the nearest grocery store and fast food restaurant. Next, we develop an empirical score to quantify the balance of food choice available to residents. Finally, we compare food access and food balance directly to health outcomes, holding constant education, income, and race. Read More
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (117.3 KB)
- Chicago Food Desert Poverty Concentration
  
  The briefing and map shows the outline of the Chicago Food Desert and highest concentration of poverty.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (536.7 KB)
- Chicago Food Desert and Car Ownership
  
  The briefing and map shows the outline of the Chicago Food Desert and lowest concentration of household that own automobiles.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (223.3 KB)
- Chicago Children & Diabetes Storyboard PDF
  
  More and more children are getting adult-level diseases such as diabetes. Does place matter?
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (258.0 KB)
- Chicago Diabetes YPLL Storyboard PDF
  
  Majority African American and majority White communities that have out-of-balance food environments will have higher rates of residents dying prematurely from diabetes that are statistically significant, controlling for income, education, and race. African American communities will be the most likely to experience the greatest total years of life lost from diabetes as a result.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (156.5 KB)
- Chicago Diet-Related Deaths Storyboard PDF
  
  We analyzed 226 tracts with at least 20 deaths each from diet-related causes per tract for year 2003. Of those 226 tracts, 100 are majority White and 97 and majority African American. Those aggregate numbers were large enough to analyze White and African American tracts further, controlling for race and other influencers, by sorting them by first by race and second by food balance, then splitting them at the median.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (222.9 KB)
- Chicago Obesity in Chicago Storyboard PDF
  
  Our Study, Examining the Impact of Food Deserts on Public Health in Chicago, included a robust, albeit self-reported, sample of height and weight from driver’s license records by Zip Code. Height and weight, included in those records, allows the calculation of body mass index (BMI), an accepted measure for obesity. The data are grouped into tertiles (thirds). The map shows a striking clustering pattern: Chicago’s North and Northwest sides have the lowest rates of BMI and the West and South sides have the highest rates of BMI.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (295.1 KB)
- Cancer and CVD in Food Desert Storyboard PDF
  
  Premature death due to cancer and cardiovascular disease is also greater for African American, White, and Latino communities where there is greater imbalance of food choices. While these effects are not statistically significant, the pattern repeats itself in nearly every instance of analysis: as communities become more out-of-balance in terms of food choices, diet-related deaths and premature death increase.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (160.4 KB)
- Chicago Food Desert Report Cover and Description Storyboard PDF
  
  In 1923, long before the rise of McDonald’s golden arches, an advertisement for beef made this proclamation in the Bridgeport Telegraph: “Ninety percent of the diseases known to man are caused by cheap foodstuffs. You are what you eat.” The phrase you are what you eat actually dates back to the 17th century. Over time, science has repeatedly demonstrated that nutritional intake directly affects health outcomes. That we are what we eat is a medical fact. But to what degree does what we eat and, thus, our health, depend on where we live and the types of food we have access to?
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (239.9 KB)
- Metro Chicago Food Stamp Retailers Storyboard PDF
  
  This storyboard includes tables of our recoding of USDA Food Stamp retailers for Metro Chicago.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (98.0 KB)
- Chicago Food Desert by 50K Household Income and More
  
  There are 3 food deserts in Chicago comprising a half million residents and 203,369 households. But not everyone who lives in the food desert is poor. Read More
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (163.3 KB)
- Untapped Opportunities for Chicago Grocers
  
  This is a baseline map that grocers and other market actors have found helpful.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (555.1 KB)
- Chicago Grocer Access Task Force Recommendations
  
  This document outlines recommended steps for Chicago to improve food access. The Task Force was formed in response to Mari Gallagher’s work.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (134.9 KB)
Other Projects
- Analysis on Central Iowa Mortgage and Rent Burden Patterns – January 3, 2008
  
  The PowerPoint, maps, and tables address home mortgage burden, rent burden and foreclosures in Central Iowa and how employer assisted housing can help address the issue.
  
  Downloads
  - Des Moines Housing Presentation PDF Download (2.8 MB)
  - Map of Home Owner Burden Central Iowa PDF Download (180.8 KB)
  - Map of Rental Burden Central Iowa PDF Download (168.8 KB)
  - Single Family Home Burden Tables PDF Download (112.1 KB)
  - Rental Burden Tables PDF Download (113.4 KB)
- Show Me The Money!
  
  The Center for Economic Progress and Mari Gallagher Research & Consulting Group release Show Me the Money! The report is an assessment of the Center’s Financial Empowerment Project. Working closely with the North Side Community Federal Credit Union, the Project recruits local employers to participate in programs that help their lower wage workers achieve financial health and stability. Read More
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (112.4 KB)
- Illinois Income and Asset Poverty Maps
  
  Mari Gallagher Research & Consulting Group, in partnership with IABG and the Asset Policy Initiative of California, developed income and asset poverty maps of Illinois by county cluster.
  View the maps at: www.povertylaw.org
- Helping the Undocumented Achieve the American Dream – Next American City - Jan. 1, 2006
  
  Juan Rodriguez is 38 years old and has worked in a factory since he arrived in the United States eight years ago. His wife, Maria, 34, followed him to the United States five years later. Together they have four children – one born in Mexico and three born in the Chicago area, where they now live. They stayed with family members in Chicago at first, but a job promotion allowed Juan and Maria to save. As city living grew more expensive, the family bought a small house in Cicero, a suburb closer to Juan’s job. So far this sounds like the typical American dream: work hard, save, move to the suburbs, buy a house and live happily ever after. But what’s different about the Rodriguez family is that neither Juan nor Maria resides or works in the United States legally. Read More
  Read full story
- Alternative IDs, ITIN Mortgages,and Emerging Latino Markets - March 6, 2005
  
  Read how banks are advancing ITIN (Individual Tax Identification Numbers) mortgages to help undocumented Mexicans buy homes.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (884.4 KB)
- Trends Impacting Latinos in the Workplace – December 6, 2007
  
  This PowerPoint was presented at the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus Foundation’s Annual Summit.
  
  Downloads
  - Download Latino Caucus Presentation Download (102.5 KB)
- Merging the Two Sides: Community Needs and Market Opportunities - June 1, 2004
  
  This is one of many articles Mari Gallagher wrote for the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago journal.
  Read More Here
- Finding the Intersection Between Compliance and New Markets
  
  This is one of many articles Mari Gallagher wrote for the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago journal.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (213.8 KB)
- Inside Game, Outside Game: Winning Strategies for Saving Urban America
  
  This is a review by Mari Gallagher on David Rusk’s provocative book critiquing community development practices.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (580.9 KB)
- Below The Radar Mexican Housing Market - June 18, 2007
  
  Read how banks are advancing ITIN (Individual Tax Identification Numbers) mortgages to help undocumented Mexicans buy homes.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (93.4 KB)
- Neighborhood Recovery: Reinvestment Policy for the New Hometown
  
  This is a review by Mari Gallagher on an interesting historical account of housing development practice and policy in Philadelphia.
  
  Downloads
  - Download PDF Download (222.5 KB)

Food Deserts and Public Health (Keep scrolling down for other content areas)

Richmond, Virginia, Children’s Diabetes Risk Assessment Launched – April, 28, 2008

Downloads

The National Center for Public Research (NCPR) Declares September National Food Desert Awareness Month

Downloads

The Potential Impacts of a Wal-Mart Supercenter [At 83rd & Stewart in Chicago, Illinois] on Grocer Agglomeration, Food Deserts, Food Balance, and Public Health – February 24, 2008

Downloads

The Courier-Journal Food Access Briefing for Louisville, Kentucky – November 25, 2007

Downloads

Louisville Storyboard

Downloads

Chicago Sun Times Briefing on USDA Food Stamp Liquor Stores - Nov. 9, 2007

Downloads

Examining the Impact of Food Deserts on Public Health in DETROIT - June 19, 2007

Downloads

Detroit Project Technical Appendix - June 19, 2007

Downloads

Detroit Stranded in the Food Desert Forum Program - June 19, 2007

Downloads

The Detroit Community Storyboard © Series on Food Deserts: Why it Matters and What Communities Can Do – March 10, 2008

Downloads

Examining the Impact of Food Deserts on Public Health in CHICAGO - July 18, 2006

Downloads

LaSalle Bank Chicago Food Desert 4-Page Brochure - July 18, 2006

Downloads

Chicago Women and Children Last in the Food Desert - July 18, 2006

Downloads

Chicago’s Most Out-of-Balance Tracts

Downloads

Chicago Food Desert Poverty Concentration

Downloads

Chicago Food Desert and Car Ownership

Downloads

Chicago Children & Diabetes Storyboard PDF

Downloads

Chicago Diabetes YPLL Storyboard PDF

Downloads

Chicago Diet-Related Deaths Storyboard PDF

Downloads

Chicago Obesity in Chicago Storyboard PDF

Downloads

Cancer and CVD in Food Desert Storyboard PDF

Downloads

Chicago Food Desert Report Cover and Description Storyboard PDF

Downloads

Metro Chicago Food Stamp Retailers Storyboard PDF

Downloads

Chicago Food Desert by 50K Household Income and More

Downloads

Untapped Opportunities for Chicago Grocers

Downloads

Chicago Grocer Access Task Force Recommendations

Downloads

Other Projects

Analysis on Central Iowa Mortgage and Rent Burden Patterns – January 3, 2008

Downloads

Show Me The Money!

Downloads

Illinois Income and Asset Poverty Maps

Helping the Undocumented Achieve the American Dream – Next American City - Jan. 1, 2006

Alternative IDs, ITIN Mortgages,and Emerging Latino Markets - March 6, 2005

Downloads

Trends Impacting Latinos in the Workplace – December 6, 2007

Downloads

Merging the Two Sides: Community Needs and Market Opportunities - June 1, 2004

Finding the Intersection Between Compliance and New Markets

Downloads

Inside Game, Outside Game: Winning Strategies for Saving Urban America

Downloads

Below The Radar Mexican Housing Market - June 18, 2007

Downloads

Neighborhood Recovery: Reinvestment Policy for the New Hometown

Downloads

Food Deserts and Public Health
(Keep scrolling down for other content areas)